05/03/08 Around the Valley

Yakima man hurt badly in car crash near Wapato

WAPATO -- A 40-year-old Yakima man was seriously injured and three others were also taken to the hospital after a car crash Thursday evening near Wapato.

The accident happened about 7:40 p.m. when a 2001 Toyota Camry driven by Pablo Romero ran a stop sign on Progressive Road and collided with another vehicle on South Wapato Road, according to the State Patrol.

Romero, 40, was taken to Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital and then to Harbor-
view Medical Center in Seattle, where further information about his condition was unavailable Friday. Memorial Hospital officials said Romero was transferred in critical condition.

Romero's two passengers, boys ages 13 and 15, were also taken by ambulance to Memorial Hospital. Their conditions were also unavailable.

The other driver, 24-year-old Irma C. Ramirez of Toppenish, was treated and released by Toppenish Community Hospital. She was behind the wheel of a 2002 Chevrolet sedan.

Troopers listed the cause of the crash as inattention. Everyone involved in the crash was wearing a seat belt, and neither drugs nor alcohol were a factor, troopers said.

Sign-ups being taken for charity golf event

GLEED -- It's time to register for the second annual Friends of Annie John Charity Golf Scramble.

Registration is $100 for singles. The cost includes a round of golf, shared cart and lunch. The tournament takes place May 10 at SunTides, an 18-hole golf course in the Gleed area.

Proceeds will benefit the A-T Children's Project, an organization dedicated to supporting and coordinating biomedical research, scientific conferences and a clinical center aimed at finding a cure for ataxia-telangiectasia.

The tournament is held in honor of Annie John, a third-grader from Selah who was diagnosed with A-T when she was 5. A-T is a rare genetic disease that combines the symptoms of cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, cancer and immune deficiencies.

Children with A-T are usually in wheelchairs by age 10 and often do not survive into their teens. There is no cure for A-T, which attacks the nervous, muscular and immune systems, compromising motor skills and leaving the body unable to repair itself. It's so rare that if two carriers have a child, their offspring's chances of getting the disease are only about one in four.

The Annie John golf tournament will open with registration and refreshments at 7:15 a.m., followed by a shotgun start at 8 a.m.

SunTides Golf Course is at 231 Pence Road. To register or for more information, call Kris Rees at 698-5788.

Child safety forum presented Thursday

YAKIMA-- A nationally recognized expert on sex offenders, child safety and church policy will conduct a daylong workshop Thursday at
Englewood Christian Church.

Cory Jewell Jensen, co-director of the Center for Behavioral Intervention in Beaverton, Ore., will explain how child molesters select both adults and children to mislead into relationships. She will also discuss the impact of sexual deviancy and criminality on the faith community.

The workshop is aimed at pastors, lay leaders, church staff, teachers, day care and camp staff, and anyone working with and caring for children.

Jensen has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and testified as an expert witness in local and federal courts. The Yakima Victim Advocacy Program is sponsoring the workshop, which begins at 8:30 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m.

Englewood Christian is at 511 N. 44th Ave. in Yakima.

For more information, call 576-4306.

Pegasus Project open house Sunday

GLEED -- The Pegasus Project Therapeutic Riding Center is hosting an open house Sunday.

The open house will run from 1 to 4 p.m. at Tumbleweed Ranch, located 26 acres off Highway 12 near Gleed. The center is finishing construction of a new, 23,000 square-foot riding facility, which will allow Pegasus riders to ride year-round.

It features an indoor, 16,000-square-foot riding arena, six horse stalls, a tack room, office space, a conference room and a viewing gallery.

The Pegasus Project provides therapeutic riding and equine-related activities to people with special physical and emotional needs. The nonprofit program began in 2003 with seven riders and one instructor at Snow Mountain Ranch in Cowiche. It relocated to Tumbleweed Ranch in 2006 and now serves about 40 riders a year from Yakima and surrounding communities.

For more information, visit www.pegasusrides.com.

Kiwanis dinner and auction Thursday

YAKIMA -- Autographed sports memorabilia, weekend getaways and wine-and-brew baskets are some of the many items up for auction at the upcoming Kamiakin Kiwanis Dinner, Fashion Show & Auction on Thursday.

The event will begin at 6 p.m. at the Howard Johnson Hotel, 9 N. Ninth St. It will feature a buffet meal, spring fashions by Macy's and a live and silent auction. Some of the bigger items up for bid include a weekend at Orcas Island, a golf and hotel package for Wildhorse Resort & Casino in Pendleton, Ore., and a birthday princess party hosted by Out on a Whim in Yakima.

Tickets cost $25 for adults and $10 for kids 12 and younger. The deadline for purchasing tickets is Tuesday.Proceeds will benefit more than a dozen organizations, including Life Choices, Circle K Club, Words for Thirds and Children's Wishes and Dreams.

For more information, or to buy tickets, call Marilyn Jensen at 972-8730.

Homeless coalition to meet next week

The Washington State Coalition for the Homeless will hold its annual conference in Yakima from Wednesday to Friday at the Yakima Convention Center.

The coalition expects more than 400 housing and service providers, advocates and government leaders to assemble for workshops and speeches under the theme "The Stage is Set."

"We chose this theme because it is a very accurate description of the current climate to end homelessness in Washington state," said Mia Wells, executive director of the Tacoma-based coalition.

Attendees will choose among 40 workshop that will address employment, housing models, effective service delivery, organizational development, re-entry housing for people leaving institutions and plans to end homelessness.

Homeless advocates want to reduce homelessness by 50 percent by 2015.